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Massive Rewrite in Google Maps V3!

Well, I did it. I finally got around to rewriting PadMapper in a newer version of Google Maps.

I’m probably one of the last developers on the planet to upgrade to Google Maps v3. Why? Well, I really, really liked Google Maps v2. That, and I wrote more extensive v2 code than most, and many of the features I had been using weren’t added to v3 immediately (or at all, in some cases) so upgrading was particularly daunting for me.

But that’s why a lot of the visual styling just changed. Also, if there are any bugs that have cropped up, please let me know! (padmapper@gmail.com).

The upgrade brings with it some neat features and refinements that I found time to toss in, or that v3 offered.

First, I could finally add the official Google mass transit overlay, which is a lot cleaner/neater than my old one. If you ever used it, you know that mine looked like a kid drew it with crayons on top of a nice Google map.

Second, for those of you with car storage anxiety, I added the ability to overlay parking lots on the map, which you should be able to call up and ask about rates by using the linked Yelp pages.

Third, there’s the elevation/terrain map in the upper right corner.

And finally, My Places now includes four transit types: Mass Transit (new!), Bicycling (redone to be more accurate), Driving, and Walking. This should help people like me who don’t really like dealing with having a car get a sense of how far things actually are.